Colorado’s Supreme Court judges survived an attempt this year to oust them from office but a new effort is underway to limit the justices to two-year terms.

A proposed ballot measure filed today would change the current term of office for Colorado Supreme Court judges from 10 years to two years, meaning every two years voters in Colorado would decide whether to retain them or oust them.

The measure, filed by Peter Coulter and Howard Sherman, impacts only Supreme Court justices and not those serving on the Court of Appeals, district courts or county courts. The 22 appeals court judges, for example, serve eight-year terms.

In addition, under the proposal, the chief justice of the Supreme Court could only serve in that role for two years at a time.

The proposed measure was filed with the Legislative Council, the first in a series of steps to getting a proposal on the ballot. If successful, voters would weigh in on the issue in the 2012 general election.

Joey Bunch has been a reporter for 28 years, including the last 12 at The Denver Post. For various newspapers he has covered the environment, water issues, politics, civil rights, sports and the casino industry.